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Re: '83 320i shimmy (archive)
[ Follow Ups ] [ 3-series (E21) Message Board ] [ Msg. Board FAQ ]
Posted by Karl Koenig on July 06, 2000 at 12:07:22:

In Reply to: '83 320i shimmy posted by Larry Osborne on July 05, 2000 at 14:38:40:

: This may have been answered before, but this is my first BMW. When I am driving at a speed between 40 and 50 mph the front end shimmies. I saw one company that had an anti-shimmy kit listed for $20. Is this kit worth the money or would I be better off spending the money on some other part to correct the problem?

[snip]
Lots of people have been down that road. See the FAQ at
http://home.earthlink.net/~engarcon/e21digest.htm

According to my local guru, the $20 kit is a couple washers to tighten the gap on the sway bar bushings in the control arms. He recommends against it, also recommends against replacing the bushings with stiffer ones. His position is that the compliance is designed in for a reason, and had unsatisfactory experience with tightening it up.

The cars are sensitive to wheel balance and cheap tires, so start there. If that's correct, check the shocks for wear, then think about replacing the bushings--with stock parts.

good luck

karl

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